Police Assert Responsibility for Naming Former Jampidsus Febrie a Corruption Suspect
The Indonesian National Police (Polri) have stated they are prepared to be held legally accountable for naming former Junior Attorney General for Special Crimes (Jampidsus) Febrie Adriansyah a corruption suspect. The Director of Public Relations for Polda Metro Jaya, Senior Commissioner Budi Hermanto, asserted that although the police investigative team had never requested information or examined him as a witness, the elevation of Febrie’s legal status to suspect remains valid and in effect. “We answer that this is based on the investigators’ belief regarding the existence of two sufficient pieces of evidence,” Budi said at the Attorney General’s Office in Jakarta on Friday.
Budi stressed that Febrie’s suspect status remains in effect even though the police have handed over the continuation of the investigation to the Attorney General’s Office. “On that basis, through the case review process, his status was elevated to suspect. And we can account for that,” Budi stated. A joint police investigative team from the Polda Metro Jaya Special Criminal Investigation Directorate and the National Police Corruption Eradication Corps completed the handover of all documents, tools, and evidence from the investigation to the Attorney General’s Office on Friday.
Police investigators named Febrie a suspect in three corruption cases related to the handling of corruption cases involving coal supply to power plants, Asabri, and Krakatau Steel. The evidence handed over to the prosecution’s investigative team primarily included cash in various local and foreign currency denominations worth IDR 67.2 billion, seized from the de’Clan restaurant and Koin Money Changer in Cipete, South Jakarta. The joint police investigative team also handed over cash evidence in various denominations totalling approximately IDR 467 billion, along with 74 kilograms of gold bullion.
In addition, the police investigative team also handed over another suspect, Don Ritto, to Jampidsus investigators. Deputy Chief of the Corruption Eradication Corps, Brigadier General Boro Windu, stated that with the handover of all evidence and the suspect to Jampidsus investigators, the further handling of the corruption case involving Febrie is now fully under the control of the Attorney General’s Office. “With the completion of this handover, the subsequent investigation process is now fully the authority of the Attorney General’s Office,” Boro Windu said. He also confirmed that the police would remain deferential and trust the continuation of the investigation process now in the hands of the Attorney General’s Office.